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Call for common sense on dog control
Farmers have urged the NSW Government to take a commonsense approach to wild dog and dingo control, as changes to Victorian measures put livestock at increasing risk of attack.
Thisyear, the Victorian Government lifted the control order for dingoes in the northwest of the state – rendering these animals a protected species and leaving farmers powerless to stop the predators from attacking and killing their livestock.
Nerriga sheep and cattle farmer John Rolfe said as the Victorian government prepares to expand this ‘unprotection order’ to the southeast of the state in October, the Minns Government must act swiftly to minimise the impact of the changes on livestock producers in NSW.
“Scientists and governments can play around with the classification of wild dogs and dingoes and what should be protected, but the reality is they both kill lambs and calves –so both need to be controlled,” Mr Rolfe said.
“Wild dogs and dingoes don’t read lines on a map, so the actions of the Victorian Government will no doubt ensure wild dogs and dingoes will leak like a sieve across the state and into New South Wales.
“These animals viciously attack and kill calves, lambs, goat kids and even larger livestock such as ewes – so we simply
cannot stand by and watch the population of these predators explode.”
As farmers continue to monitor for wild dog and dingo attacks across the states, Mr Rolfe said a practical, considered pest control strategy was critical to ensure New South Wales’ livestock industry could be protected from the effects of wild dogs and dingoes.
“Keeping control orders for wild dogs and dingoes in place across New South Wales should be the bare minimum when it comes to keeping our goats, sheep and cattle safe from attack,” Mr Rolfe said.
“Now the Victorian Government has let the side down and unleashed these predators, the New South Wales Government must prepare to do everything in its power to protect our livestock industry from the effects of these senseless decisions.
“Coordination and funding to ramp up baiting, exclusion fencing and other measures to control wild dogs and dingoes must be tabled by the government and fast if we want to get ahead of the problem – or else it will take nothing short of a miracle to get on top of these pests.”
Leesa Muir GENERAL MANAGER AND ADVERTISING
Rebecca Flisher CREATIVE MANAGER
Zoe McMaugh CONTENT MANAGER
Sam Wake ADVERTISING
Krista Schade
RIVERINE GRAZIER JOURNALIST
Jennifer Ho TRAINEE GRAPHIC DESIGN
Kimberly Grabham
RIVERINE GRAZIER JOURNALIST
Agtech Alley debuts at Henty
Improvements will be introduced to the Henty Machinery Field Days this year, thanks to two different funding grants.
HentyMachinery Field Days is one of 22 organisations around the nation to receive funding under Round 2 of the AgriFutures Agritech Event Sponsorship Program to host an innovative new event in 2024.
Called Agtech Alley, it will deliver practical advice to producers and industry organisations through hourly showcases, panel discussions and live demonstrations.
Henty Machinery Field Days chief executive officer Belinda Anderson said Agtech Alley would be a one-stop shop aimed to educate and demonstrate adoption of best practice.
Visitors will be able to learn about cutting-edge innovation and how they can apply the latest technology on-farm, be it remote sensors, connectivity, or postharvest solutions to streamline business operations.
To be held September 17-19 this year, Henty Machinery Field Days is now regarded as southern Australia’s single
biggest agricultural event, showcasing the latest in machinery and farm equipment, outdoors and camping products, farm produce, agronomy, country lifestyle, government and health services, agribusiness and finance services.
In 2023, the event saw over 55,000 attend throughout the three days and showcased over $200 million worth of machinery and technology from over 800 exhibitors on the 105ha site.
This year, the event’s organisers have received $20,000 from the NSW Government’s Regional Event Fund to step up its promotion of agritourism in the RiverinaMurray region and further increase its visitation reach.
“HMFD provides an opportunity for growth of the region’s agritourism through its marketing plan which aims to attract visitors who have not been before,” Mrs Anderson said.
“Alongside these visitors to agriculture, this marketing approach also provides an opportunity to promote the region and the agritourism experiences available to visitors.”
Mrs Anderson said it was important for the field days to continue to evolve by broadening its reach to visitors outside the agricultural sector.
“Henty has an established foothold on the agricultural calendar and receives strong support from businesses and visitors each year, however we do not rest on our laurels and aim to remain relevant and continually evolving,” Mrs Anderson said.
“We are broadening our appeal to those who may have never visited the field days and to plan their day off work to coincide with a visit to an event considered as a ‘must see’ by around 60,000 visitors each year.”
Learn more about the field days and secure your ticket by going to www.hmfd.com.au.
No small feat
One of the rice industry’s top honours has been awarded to Deniliquin growers Josh and Emily Small.
Thepair claimed the 2024 SunRice Grower of the Year award at the 2024 Rice Industry Awards in Moama last week. And they were not the only local growers to be recognised at the awards, with a number of district growers receiving awards in the yield and special grain categories.
Deniliquin’s Bill Holden was also singled out at the awards night, receiving the Grower Industry Contribution Award. It acknowledges an individual who has made exceptional contributions to the rice industry beyond their own farming operations.
The Smalls operate Rivena Nominees, which was nominated for the top rice award for consistently being in the top 20 per cent of yields for the Eastern Murray Valley. Setting them apart was their impressive adoption of technology and practices to increase water use efficiency using innovation and technology to improve the way their farm operates.
Mr Small attributes their strong yield results to their efforts to introduce new technology such as precision agriculture, soil testing and crop rotation which introduced legumes to help fix nitrogen.
“We predominately grow rice, and it fits in really well with our whole farm enterprise,” he said.
“We can retain the moisture for our cereal crops and then ahead of growing rice we can use our legumes, vetch and clovers, for feed to maximise our livestock production as well.”
Mr Small is also proud that the water used by Rivena Nominees is now fully recycled, with every drop used being recycled across three individual pump sites, resulting in huge water savings.
“Josh and Emily’s farming system exemplifies excellence in production, people management, profitability and sustainability.”
MARK GROAT
Mark Groat from Rice Extension said the award is designed to highlight the best of what this industry has to offer, which is precisely what the Smalls are doing.
“Josh and Emily’s farming system exemplifies excellence in production, people management, profitability and sustainability,” he said.
Accepting the SunRice Grower of the Year from SunRice Group chairman Laurie Arthur, the Smalls spoke of the importance of family and the strength of intergenerational rice growing.
“We are proud to be third generation rice growers, and we’re building our enterprise on the very strong collaboration between my parents, the rice growing excellence of my father and business mind of my mother,” Mr Small said.
“We’re very grateful to receive this award and to be part of such an innovative and collaborative industry as
rice growing. We look forward to being ambassadors for the rice industry.”
The SunRice Grower of the Year Winner receives an impressive $10,000 support package to help them further expand their business, such as personal or business development, and a nomination for the Australian Farmer of the Year Award. The 2024 SunRice Grower of The Year Award is assessed on farm by a panel of three judges including two industry representatives, one independent judge and the 2023 Grower of the Year. The panel assesses applications based on eight key areas: production and agronomy, water use efficiency, innovation and technology, business management, sustainability, work health and safety, and industry and community involvement. Judge Troy Mauger from Jerilderie Rice said what impressed him the most about the Small’s enterprise was their efforts in sustainability.
“The business is evolving by embracing new technologies such as the use of field maps, precision agriculture to guide lime application to address soil pH issues.
“This approach aims to improve soil health and ultimately boost yields and productivity.
“It’s also very encouraging how they manage their staff and believe in upskilling their team.”
Fellow judge and Ricegrowers’ Association of Australia policy and project manager Neil Bull said, “the rice industry is in very good hands with farmers like the Small family”.
“Josh’s strong interest in improving the performance of his farm by trying different things and adopting new and emerging technologies is what set them apart,” he said.
Josh and Emily Small with Laurie Arthur SunRice Group Chairman.
Josh and Emily Small accepting their award.
In the Port of Melbourne Highest Yield Awards, four growers with the highest yields in their regions were recognised. Murrumbidgee Irrigation Area finalist Allawah Family Trust, yielding 16.36T/ha on 23.75ha, was awarded the Overall Highest Yield award. It was presented to David Andrighetto on the night. Finalists in other regions were as follows:
• Western Murray Valley - Matthew and Jess Russ on behalf of Russ Family Farming Pty Ltd, yielding 14.89 tonnes per hectare on 181 hectares.
• Eastern Murray Valley - Doug Hatty of Mardenoora Farming Pty Ltd, yielding 14.54T/ha on 75.28ha.
• Coleambally Irrigation Area - Fred and Kathy Hibbert of FW G & FW Hibbert, yielding 13.20T/ ha on 67.51ha.
• The Yenda Producers Specialist Grain Yield Awards acknowledged highest yields by rice variety. These included:
• Topaz - Patrick Sergi of Widgelli Sergrow Pty Ltd, yielding 12.09T/ha on 135.49ha.
• Langi - Murrami-based Tony Mallamace of Mallamace Family Trust, yielding 12.24T/ha on 84.24ha.
• Opus - Charles McDonald of Barham representing Widderin Past Co, yielding 12.1T/ha on 166.4ha.
• Koshikari - Antony Vagg of Amaloo Pastoral Co, yielding 10.02T/ha on 63.68ha.
• Sherpa - Deniliquin’s Graeme and Libby Barker of GE & EH Barker, yielding 15.07T/ha on 38.27ha. The joint winners of the Excellence in Extension, Research and Advisory Award - recognising agronomists, advisors and researchers who have significantly contributed to advancing rice production - were Brian and Tina Dunn.
Zara and Bill Holden, Julian Zanatta and Jarrod Holden.
Mark Groat, SunRice Grower Servies, Tina and Brian Dunn.
James Mann, Yenda Producers Co-operative, Matt Barker, Antony Vagg, Charles McDonald.
Fred Hibbert, David Andrighetto, Doug Hatty and David Jarwood, Port of Melbourne.
Consider vaccinating for OJD
You probably already vaccinate your lambs with 6-in-1 or 5-in-1 to protect them against diseases such as pulpy kidney and tetanus.
But have you considered using Gudair vaccine to protect them from Ovine Johne’s Disease (OJD)?
Ovine Johne’s Disease is an incurable wasting disease. Infection occurs by the faecal-oral route, that is, animals eating or drinking something contaminated with the causative bacteria. While sheep of any age can pick up infection lambs seem most susceptible. The disease has a long incubation period (time between picking up the bacteria and showing signs), with the disease most likely to be seen in animals two years or older.
This means we vaccinate young lambs to protect them against getting OJD when they are older.
Where will your lambs be at two years of age? Prime lambs should have already gone to market and become Sunday dinner. Vaccination is not likely to be of benefit to them. However, vaccination should be considered for anything that will be kept into adulthood such as ewe lambs, and possibly Merino wether lambs.
What are the risks of exposure to OJD? Obviously, if you have had a diagnosis of OJD in your flock then the risks are high, and vaccination is a great way of managing that risk.
But just because you don’t have a diagnosis, doesn’t mean you don’t have disease. Traditionally, we think of OJD as a disease confined to high rainfall areas such as southeast NSW and parts of Victoria. But we are increasingly diagnosing cases outside these areas. With the increase in movements of sheep, this trend is likely to continue.
Even if you have a strict biosecurity plan and only purchase sheep which are at low risk of having OJD, it doesn’t make you immune to disease. Infected stray sheep and the movement of bacteria through water, such as run off from a neighbouring property, can spread the disease to your farm. Using vaccination along with biosecurity increases your protection against the disease.
Gudair vaccine is a single dose vaccine. No booster is needed. The vaccine contains a killed bacteria in an adjuvant that allows gradual exposure to the sheep after injection.
As this is a killed vaccine, starting a vaccination program cannot introduce the disease onto your property.
Vaccination is recommended between 4–16 weeks of age, as this timing allows for protection prior to exposure to the disease. These lambs are known as ‘Approved
Vaccinates’ and can be identified with a V-tag, that is a National Livestock Identification System tag that has the letter V in a circle on it to identify this animal as Gudair vaccinated. Use of V-tags is no longer mandatory in NSW but can be useful for store animals, especially from a marketing perspective, so buyers know they are vaccinated. While the vaccine can be given to sheep of any age it is less likely to be as effective or economical in animals older than 16 weeks
Safe use of the vaccine is important, severe tissue reactions can occur if humans are accidentally injected with the vaccine. To assist in preventing human injury, Gudair vaccine should be administered with a safety vaccinator gun which covers up the needle when not in use. Correct vaccination technique is also important to prevent tissue reactions in the lamb, follow the instructions on the packet including recommended needle size.
When you choose which vaccines you give your lambs this year, consider Gudair. Think about the risk of OJD on your farm and where those lambs will be in the future. For more information about OJD, or vaccination, contact your local District Vet.
RIVERINA SHEEP SPRING SALE
Jerilderie
Prime Sheep & Lamb Market
Prime Sheep & Lamb Market
Prime Sheep & Lamb Market
Aug 30
Wanganella & Poll Boonoke Stud Ram preview
Caroonboon Merino Stud Ram Sale
Feeder Lamb Sale (Interfaced A+ )
Pooginook Merino Stud Open day
Prime Sheep & Lamb Markert
Wunnamurra Poll Dorests
Avenel Merino Stud Open day
Wanganella & Poll Boonoke Stud Merino Ram Sale
Avenel Merino Stud Ram Sale
Store Sheep & Lamb Sale
Woodpark Poll Merino Ram Sale
Pooginook Merino Stud Ram Sale
Prime Sheep & Lamb Market
Willandra Merino Stud Ram Sale
The Yanko Merino Stud Ram Sale
Feeder Lamb Sale (Interfaced A+ )
One Oak Poll Merino Stud Ram Sale
Caroonboon Southern Dohne Sale
Store Sheep & Lamb Sale
Prime Sheep & Lamb Market
Store Sheep & Lamb Sale
Prime Sheep & Lamb Market
Store Sheep & Lamb Sale
Prime Sheep & Lamb Market
Prime Sheep & Lamb Market
Store Sheep & Lamb Sale
Prime Sheep & Lamb Market
Prime Sheep & Lamb Market
Andrew Low, 0427 533 377
Peter Head, 0417 545 822
Deniliquin
John Fitzpatrick, 0408 500 182
Jason Andrews, 0428 629 399
Alex O’Brien, 0437 795 563
David Wilson, 0407 644 269
Deniliquin
Deniliquin
Deniliquin On property On property Hay On property
Deniliquin On property On property On property On property Hay Conargo SG On property
Deniliquin On property On property Hay On property On property
Jerilderie
Deniliquin
Deniliquin
Deniliquin
Jerilderie
Deniliquin
Deniliquin
Deniliquin
Deniliquin
Deniliquin
1pm 11.00 am 1:30pm 12:00pm 9:30am 1pm 12:30pm 11.00 am 1pm 1:30pm 11.00 am 9:30am 11.00 am 9:30am 11.00 am 9:30am 9:30am 11.00 am 9:30am 9:30am
David Rankin, 0427 938 187 Trevor Basset, 0409 412 713 (Auctions Plus Co-ordinator)
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Hay wants your fleece
Hay Show committee member Mike Cannon has put out the call; “We want your fleeces!”
“Hay Show will celebrate its 150th annual show this year and the hard-working committee is striving to make it one to remember,” Mr Cannon said.
“Hay is a major centre of the Merino sheep industry, and we want to highlight that fact with a stunning fleece display.”
Mr Cannon was honoured at the 2023 show, with the Royal Agricultural Show of NSW medallion, recognising his years of service. It was noted that he had rallied 22 fleeces to compete in last year’s show, after receiving just two entries the year prior.
“We had a big exhibit last year and want to eclipse that for our 150th Show and follow on from the success of the recent Hay Sheep Show.”
Mungadal Hay took home the 2023 champion fleece ribbon, followed by Glen Echo (Rankins Springs) and equal third North Cobran (Hay) and Mungadal. The best fleece under six months was won by Rosevale (Hay).
According to the experts, fleeces are best bagged in dark-coloured plastic bags and well-sealed before being dropped off to Mr Cannon or Lugsdin Toyota in Nailor St.
A brief description must be included with fleeces, including owner’s name and bloodline (optional).
A detail fleece description is essential - for example; “Commercial Merino ewe – three years old - and should include shearing interval such as six months, nine months or 12 months.
Stud fleece entries must indicate that the fleece is to compete in a stud category, and all fleeces are to be skirted.
Fleeces to compete in the commercial yield class must have belly wool and pieces included.
“Please place a copy of the above-mentioned details on and in the bags with fleece entries,” Mr Cannon said.
Fleeces will be sampled and tested before the show and categories allocated per these results.
Entries close on Friday, August 23, 2024
For further information, refer to the Hay Show schedule, call Mike Cannon on 0428 151 599 or email mikecannon@optusnet.com.au.
On Property Ram Sale
Crutching & Lamb Marking
• 3 & 2 Stand Trailers can be combined to make 5 stands
• 2 Lamb Marking and Mulesing teams running from May to the end of September • Contract Mustering
Mike Cannon.
Natives seed local success
Irrigation is a central element of the Riverina’s agricultural output. From rice, cotton, cereals, fruit and vegetable crops to grapes, dairy, sheep, hay and pastures for grazing, this region is renowned for its abundance and diversity of produce.
Marc and Stacey Brooke are one such couple who have wholeheartedly embraced the area’s inherent spirit of diversity, with the transformation of their small cropping farm nestled on the outskirts of Wakool into the blossoming Australian natives enterprise, Tulla Natives. From propagating, planting, cutting and packing, an extraordinary level of activity happens at the couple’s Tullakool Road property. No day looks the same.
One day the pair can be found packing out pallets of their glorious home-grown native floriculture for transporting to Sydney’s flower wholesale market; while the next they are heading offsite to plant tens of thousands of seedlings into the ground as part of their contract tree planting service.
Over in their native plant nursery, which grows a large variety of species ranging from Acacia and Eucalyptus to Bottle-trees, Kurrajong, Grevillea and Melaleuca, there are seeds to sow, cuttings to trim and plant, traystock to thin and grade and orders to prepare.There is also a garden centre, which operates most weekends from Autum through to Spring. The quiet rise of this diverse business stems from the couple’s dream of making a living working for themselves doing something they love, combined with hard work, tenacity and a knack for seizing smart opportunities as they arise.
“We have always wanted to run our own business and work for ourselves,” Stacey said.
“While it means you have to work twice as long, you also enjoy it twice as much!”
The couple moved to Wakool nine years ago when Marc took a job working on a local farm. Pursuing a livelihood growing natives was the last thing the pair had in mind at the time. They purchased their 100-hectare (240 acres) property and turned their hands to cropping while simultaneously working their off-farm jobs. The goal was to eventually transition from part time to full time farmers. However, after a year or so, it became clear that small scale crop farming would not provide the financial independence they so craved.
Unperturbed, the indefatigable couple began exploring other alternatives for making a living from their farm and, inspired by their mutual love of gardening and native plants, landed on the concept of establishing a native cut flower and foliage plantation. Seven years ago, that’s where the Tulla Natives story began.
“We built a small shade house, and started growing plants from seed,” Marc said.
“We weren’t quite sure when we first started where it was all going.
“Initially the idea was to supply a couple of local florists and some local weddings.”
Persistence and patience were key as, over the next four years, Marc and Stacey slowly planted out their eight-hectare (20 acres) drip irrigation Australian native plantation. All this while holding down their day jobs!
“We were working full time for others at the time, so we were planting at night, at the weekend - whenever we could,” Stacey said.
“It was a pretty busy time.”
The joy the couple derived from germinating their own seeds then sparked another idea for them to pursue.
“We started having some excess trees and thought we could sell them locally,” Marc said.
“And then we were like: ‘Why don’t we start a nursery?’”
Why not!
So, as they waited for their floriculture plantation to flourish (some native varieties can take up to five years to become productive), Marc and Stacey launched themselves into developing their retail nursery; which soon morphed into a wholesale business following the pragmatic purchase of a nearby nursery.
“We were visiting a nursery at Cohuna that specialises in trees for revegetation and Landcare projects,” Marc explained.
“The owner told us he was selling the business. We thought it through and ended up buying it.
“We shifted all the infrastructure over here - shade houses, benching, seeds and trays - and picked up the clientele list of who he’d been supplying for the last 30 years. That’s what threw us into the wholesale tray stock side of things.”
But it was a chance meeting four years ago at a local Field Day between Marc and a man named Dustin McCreery that really took the Tulla Natives nursery business to a whole new level. Dustin is the operator of Western Australia-based tree nursery Chatfields,
which holds the national licence to propagate and supply the drought tolerant CSIRO-developed AnamekaTM Saltbush.
“Meeting with Dustin was a pivotal point,” Marc said. “He was looking for an eastern-based nursery that could grow and supply AnamekaTM to the eastern side of Australia.”
Tulla Natives has been growing and supplying the fast growing saltbush variety to the eastern states under Chatfield Nursery’s national grower licence ever since. CSIRO research shows AnamekaTM has a higher nutritional value than standard saltbushes, and can help regenerate the land. It also thrives on soils that are challenging to grow crops. Furthermore, it grows at a lower, more accessible level for stock to access and, being less bitter than traditional Old Man Saltbush, the sheep and cattle love eating it! As Stacey explains, it’s like “a big cos lettuce on a bush”.
“We grow it from cuttings,” she said.
“The goal is to have all the tray stock sold out by the end of Winter - and be ready to start all over again in the Spring.”
In their first year of growing AnamekaTM, Tulla Natives raised 25,000 seedlings. That number reached 300,000 this year, with orders coming in from Victoria, South Australia, Queensland as well as across NSW.
“Demand for AnamekaTM is really starting to grow,” Marc said.
“A lot of people are hearing about its benefits and wanting to give it a try.”
Their AnamekaTM seedlings constitute a large proportion (around two thirds) of the 250,000 plants that Tulla Natives has put into the ground this year through their contract tree planting operation. The move into mass planting is the couple’s most recent business diversification. Depending on soils and conditions, their planter machine has the capacity to plant around 12,000 per day, with jobs ranging from carbon and revegetation projects to wildlife corridors and feedlot screening. The couple anticipates this contract planting venture to grow as the demand for carbon offsetting rises. But what of the cut flower and foliage plantation, the seeds of which they sowed seven years ago?
In true Tulla Natives fashion, it has flourished into a treasure trove of native offerings, from glowing pink Proteas and bright Bottlebrushes to Grevilleas, Hakeas, iconic Banksias and the stunning and highly sought after silver and white Eucalyptus Tetragona. The couple made the leap from local retail sales to supplying the wholesale market last year after, in yet another moment of serendipity, they struck up a conversation with a flower wholesaler while attending a national flower conference.
“He came out to the farm afterwards, took a look at what we had in the paddock and said: ‘Send me the lot’,” Stacey said.
“We were pretty chuffed about that!”
Tulla Natives delivers between 200 and 600 bunches of native goodies into the premium Sydney wholesale market each week. From there it ends up in the hands of florists around Australia. They have their sights on the export market next. The business’s recent shift from modest local retailer to bulk wholesale flower supplier did not come without its challenges. Stacey and Marc needed to learn rapidly about meeting the strict standards of the cut-flower market.
“We had no idea about the requirements for the wholesale markets,” Stacey said with a smile.
“There’s no book, no guide. Everyone tells you something different.
“It took us six months to learn how to properly cut the flowers - it has to be all uniform.
“Then there’s volume, bunching, stem size, quality and packing requirements.
“Just navigating all that was quite challenging, but now we’ve nailed it.
“We do it very well; and we’re very proud of what we do.”
With their gazes ever on the future, Marc and Stacey are continuing to expand their cut flower and foliage plantation. They recently finished hand planting another 14,000 natives across 14 more hectares (35 acres) of their
farm; all of which are fed through a further 33 kilometres of drip irrigation line. This means in a few years’ time Tulla Natives will have 22 hectares (55 acres) of productive floriculture for the wholesale flower markets.
“We’ve learned through trial error and over the past seven years what grows well here and what doesn’t,”
Marc said.
“A lot of the popular floriculture we produce are Western Australian varieties.
“Our climates are quite similar, and the country we’ve planted up has nice sandy loam soil that provides similar conditions to where they grow naturally in Western Australia.
“The fact we’ve got access to water (their average yearly water use per hectare is 1.5 meg) means we can really push things along and grow a really good product.”
In case you haven’t guessed, Marc and Stacey are no longer reliant upon off-farm jobs to supplement their incomes and support their dream. Instead, they are proud employers themselves, with two part time staff on the books. They also engage several casual workers during the Spring and Summer, when their propagating activity is at its peak. These days they are able to pour all their time, love and energy into their burgeoning enterprise.
Tulla Natives is indeed their full time job and 24/7 focus.
*Tulla Natives has been named as a finalist in the 2024 Campaspe Murray Business Excellence Awards in the Best Agri Business category. The winners will be announced on 30 October 2024.
Stacey and Marc Brooke, Tulla Natives.
7000 feral pigs controlled
More than 7000 feral pigs have been controlled in the Riverina Local Land Services region as a result of multiple targeted programs.
One of the programs was the NSW Government funded Feral Pig Program, which ran from October 2023 to June 2024.
The Feral Pig team in Riverina significantly increased landholder participation with ground control programs and controlled high numbers of feral pigs.
Over the program period, feral pigs were controlled across over 400 landholdings covering an area of over 1.5 million hectares.
“The success of this program has been the level of landholder participation to be part of coordinated control programs,” the Riverina LLS shared.
“Landholders involved in coordinated programs help remove ‘gaps’ in the landscape and reduce feral pig movements and breeding opportunities, this in turn reduces feral pig impacts.
“The on-ground support and participation from landholders in this program has been tremendous and is critical to its ongoing success.
“We have been using innovative technologies to control feral pigs, and we are always happy to work with landholders, community groups or stakeholders in the fight against feral pigs.”
Feral pig populations can be both stationary and transient.
Weather conditions and food availability affect the movement of feral pigs throughout a landscape.
Their home range is determined by habitat type, food supply, size of individual animals and population density.
Even if disturbed, feral pigs will not move far and will readily return to their home ranges.
Landholders have a responsibility to control feral pigs on their property to reduce their impact.
Feral pigs cause damage to crops, pastures, water holes, fencing and can cause significant economic losses to agricultural production through predation of livestock, disease introduction and environmental damage.
DENILIQUIN TREE
They create significant soil disturbance, altering drainage, increasing turbidity and sedimentation and greatly assisting the spread of weeds.
Feral pigs can also carry disease and parasites that affect stock and pose a disease risk to humans (eg brucellosis). They are a major potential host of a number of exotic diseases, such as foot-and-mouth disease.
Primary control options including baiting and aerial shooting, while secondary control methods may include ground shooting and trapping.
Fencing is encouraged as a preventative control method.
• For more information about the Feral Pig Program or controlling feral pigs on your property, contact Rod Baker from the Riverina LLS on 0419 556 103 or your local biosecurity officer.
SunRice buys SavourLife for $20m
The SunRice Group’s CopRice business will expand further into the branded pet food market after signing a share purchase agreement to acquire 100 per cent of SavourLife.
SavourLife is an Australian pet food company which specialises in premium dog food and treats, while striving to deliver on its social mission to save and re-home abandoned dogs.
The $20.3 million acquisition will see SavourLife integrated into CopRice, using CopRice’s existing manufacturing and nutrition capabilities to help accelerate the growth of SavourLife while continuing to deliver on its social mission.
Inspired by a love for dogs and a desire to make a difference, SavourLife offers a range of Australian made premium dog food and treats.
The SavourLife team is driven by a social mission to save and re-home abandoned dogs, by donating 50 per cent of profits to help save rescue dogs.
SunRice Group CEO Paul Serra said CopRice will continue this agreement post-acquisition.
Since its inception, SavourLife has donated more than $8 million to Australian dog rescue organisations and supported the re-homing of more than 63,000 dogs.
“This acquisition positions our CopRice business to further expand into the branded companion animal market, where we’ve seen growing demand for premium products,” Mr Serra said.
“We believe that SavourLife is well positioned to continue to grow in Australia, with Australia having one of the highest dog ownership rates in the world.
“SavourLife will also complement CopRice’s existing products, which are known for their quality ingredients.
“CopRice already manufactures SavourLife’s dog food range. The acquisition will use CopRice’s existing manufacturing facilities and supply chain to improve efficiencies and provide future growth opportunities.
“We look forward to working with Michael McTeigue, SavourLife’s founder, and the SavourLife team to continue to deliver on SavourLife’s mission of making a difference and continuing to support dog rescue groups.”
Mr McTeigue said the acquisition will not only grow the SavourLife business, but expand the ability to deliver on its mission.
“CopRice has been an important partner in building SavourLife into the business it is today, and I know that together we will build an even greater business into the future.”
Mr McTeigue will continue in his role with SavourLife, alongside co-founder Kimberlee McTeigue and all other SavourLife employees who will remain in the business.
SavourLife had revenue of $33.4 million and normalised EBITDA of about $2.8 million in the year to April 30, 2024.
As an existing manufacturer for SavourLife, only incremental revenues will be recognised by CopRice going forward.
Completion of the transaction is expected to occur by August 30, 2024, pending satisfaction of a number of standard conditions precedent. The purchase price will be funded from existing cash reserves and available debt facilities.
More information about SavourLife can also be found at www.savour-life. com.au
SunRice Group CEO Paul Serra.
The acquisition of SavourLife is part of CopRice’s strategy to expand investment in the branded companion animal sector. Photo: SavourLife
Shearing Contractor HAY NSW
Shearing team available
Over 40 years experience
• Available 2 x 5 stand shearing and CRS Trailer
• Generators
• Wool presses
• Pression in wool classers on hand
• References available
Contact Lionel Garner on 0427 696 346
Hay NSW 2711
Helen Dalton MP
The economic impact of pest animals including Carp, Feral Pigs, European Red Fox, Feral Cats, Feral Goats, Wild Rabbits and introduced birds has been estimated to cost the NSW economy around $170 million. Carp numbers in the Murray Darling river system are exploding. Did you know that 90% of the fish mass in our rivers is carp? These rabbits of the river are destroying our natural waterways and environment and their control and eradication needs to be a priority. Feral Pig numbers are also going through the roof as they spread disease, destroy habitat, compete with our native plants and animals and damage our crops and pastures.
In the NSW 2024-25 State budget the government announced $945.7million for biosecurity measures. This included $13.1million in the 2024-25 budget for the Feral Pig Program which is a good start. I think the NSW government should be looking across the Victorian border to learn how they manage their Fox control program. Victoria’s fox and wild dog bounty scheme pays $10 for entire fo scalps and $120 for entire wild dog body parts. Trapping can be undertaken with the aid of mesh cage traps, or soft/ rubber jawed leg hold traps and lures. There must be a better way than using 1080 in NSW to control this pest. Should we introduce a similar bounty to control this destructive animal on our properties? I believe we should be doing everything we can to protect the state’s $22 billion agriculture industry and a bounty on Foxes is just as critical as Carp and Feral Pig control and eradication. On a recent trip to Deniliquin as I drove into town, I stopped by a what I can only describe as a “Fence of Fame.” There must have been at least 30 Fox pelts hanging from the fence. It was a glorious sight and if there was a bounty, I’m sure the $3000 or so this family could have earned would have gone a long way towards easing cost of living stress in the bush and saving their livelihood and the environment.
Calculating hand feeding rations for livestock
If you are looking at your paddocks and assessing condition of your livestock and thinking there is a gap in supply versus requirement, you might be considering your options: offloading stock to sales, agistment, or other options such as hand feeding stock.
Hosted by Murray Local Land Services will be a ‘Discussing sustainability frameworks’ workshop on June 18 and a ‘Technology and innovation is agriculture’ workshop To effectively and efficiently feed stock, it is important to understand the nutritional requirements of the different classes eg: pregnant, empty or lactating. You can then utilise feed test results, or standard feed tables to determine what rations will meet nutritional requirements of your stock.
A few things to remember before you start,
• stock require some roughage,
• standard nutritional requirements are based on maintenance not gaining condition. They will need more to do more (eg. grow, increase condition, be pregnant, feed lambs/ calves)
• stock need to be introduced onto grain slowly to reduce the risk of acidosis,
• when returning stock to lush pastures following a seasonal break, ensure access to dry roughage, don’t turn out hungry stock and ensure clostridial vaccinations are up to date,
• different classes of stock eg. Wethers, lactating ewes, bulls, weaners etc, have different nutritional demands,
• obtaining Feed Test Results will give you more accurate information on the specific feed you are planning on using (values can change based on seasonal variations and quality).
Nutritional requirements of livestock are described as ‘Megajoules of Metabolisable Energy/ day’ required (MJ ME/ day). Adequate protein is also important, particularly for growing stock.
Feed test results will display nutritional values of the feed source on a ‘per kilogram DM’ (Dry Matter) basis. This allows you to compare feeds with different moisture contents (eg. grain vs silage). The higher the %DM the less water and more energy per kilo fed.
By using your feed test data for different feed sources, eg. barley vs wheat vs hay you can work out the differences in the MJ ME/kg DM supplied by each feed. You can then use this information against the requirements of one animal, multiplied by the number of animals of that class present to work out how much you need to feed the group. There are many resources (listed at the bottom of this article) to help you to do these calculations.
For 100 cows (late pregnant weighing 500kg) this would mean 10.7 kg DM x 100 = 1070 kg DM per day. Some processes (such as crushing or milling grain) can increase the amount of energy available from the feed because it is easier for the animals to digest. But caution should be exercised as crushing or milling grain increases the surface area of the grain being fed which also increases the risk of acidosis.
When developing your feeding rations, consider:
• costs of feed- this can be broken down to a cents/ MJ ME basis for comparison,
• animal intake (physical capacity to consume the required kilograms to meet their requirements),
• access to roughage,
• consideration of wastage in calculations (above calculations don’t factor wastage).
Additional resources can be found below and the NSW DPI Drought and Supplementary Feeding Calculator https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/animals-and-livestock/
nutrition/feeding-practices/drought-and-supplementaryfeed-calculator is a handy resource both web based or on your phone for comparing feed sources and ration mixes.
• Balancing Nutrition and Cost https://www.lls.nsw. gov.au/help-and-advice/livestock-health-andproduction/livestock-advice/balancing-nutritionand-cost-a-guide-to-feed-options-for-livestockgraziers
• Feeding & Managing Livestock https://www.lls. nsw.gov.au/help-and-advice/livestock-healthand-production/livestock-advice/feeding-andmanaging-livestock-over-winter
• Feed Test Laboratory Services https://www. dpi.nsw.gov.au/about-us/services/laboratoryservices/feed-quality
• Drought Feeding Livestock https://www.lls. nsw.gov.au/help-and-advice/drought/droughtfeeding-livestock
• MLA- Weaner throughput – nutritional requirements tables (beef) https://mbfp.mla. com.au/siteassets/cattle-genetics/weanerthroughput.pdf
• Making More From Sheep- Nutritional Requirement Tables https://www. makingmorefromsheep.com.au/healthycontented-sheep/tool_11.1.html
For further information, phone your local LLS office and ask to speak to an Ag Team or Animal Biosecurity team member.
Contributed by Rebecca Stacey (pictured), senior local lands officer - mixed farming with Murray Local Land Services.
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These great titles and more available instore. We post direct to you, contact us today to discuss getting your copies posted* *Postage and Handling fees apply.
New landcare grants program
In celebration of 2024 Landcare Week - August 5-11 - Landcare Australia has unveiled an exciting new Landcare Australia Community Grants program.
LItis intended to direct funds right into the heart of grassroots landcare across Australia.
The $300,000 program will offer grants from $5,000 to $20,000.
All landcare groups and other community-led environmental groups across Australia are eligible to apply.
The grants will support what matters most to landcare groups – using local knowledge to restore, enhance and protect their natural environment, increase biodiversity and help improve community engagement in landcare activities.
Landcare Australia is particularly interested in grassroots projects which galvanise community action
to help increase the number of people rolling up their sleeves for conservation projects in their local patch.
Eligible activities include educational workshops, field days, restoring wildlife habitat, creating shelterbelts, installing fences, protecting waterways, managing weeds and feral pests, working with Traditional Owners and First Nations organisations, purchasing plants and equipment, installing signage, among other landcare activities.
For more information about the Landcare Australia Community Grants program, go to: https:// landcareaustralia.org.au/news/landcare-australiacommunity-grants-program-2024.
FARMtalk welcomes community contributions from farmers, experts and professionals who make their living and life on the land. If you would like to contribute, there are several ways to do so.
• Get in touch and give us a tip of a great story idea.
• Contribute an article: If you are an expert in your field then contributing once off, or regularly, is a great way to get started in our FARMtalk magazine. Contact Zoe McMaugh at farmtalk@denipt.com.au or 03 5881 2322.
• Become an author: FARMtalk is open to occasional contributors who are experts in their field or authorities on a subject or area. Once you have contributed an article, and the editorial team have approved you, we can set you up with a regular column to contribute. We would love to hear from you. Contact Zoe McMaugh at farmtalk@denipt.com.au or 03 5881 2322.
249 Cressy Street, Deniliquin. Phone 03 5881 2080. info@deninews.com.au
• Have a fascinating farm in mind for us to showcase? Tell us! We would love to hear from you. Contact Zoe McMaugh at farmtalk@denipt.com.au or 03 5881 2322.
